News Release

Wild Horses and Burros On Their Way to Camp Pendleton

Don't miss your chance to add a wild horse or burro to your family when the Bureau of Land Management offers animals for public adoption Friday and Saturday, September 14 and 15, at the Camp Pendleton Rodeo Grounds in Oceanside.

Forty animals will be available from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Saturday. Anyone interested can preview the mustangs and burros when they arrive at the rodeo grounds on Friday, September 14, at 2:00 p.m.

The adoption event opens with an hour of silent bidding beginning at 9 a.m. Saturday. Animals not taken during bidding will be available, first come, first served, afterward for a $125 adoption fee.

Directions to the Camp Pendleton Rodeo Grounds are: From I-5 take Hwy 76 east, turn left on Collage Ave. Take a right on River Road which turns into Vandergrift Blvd. Go straight to the San Luis Rey gate. Proceed 1 mile inside the base. Rodeo grounds are on left side of the road. All visitors will be asked for valid drivers license, proof of vehicle insurance and registration.

“This is a great opportunity to adopt a young, healthy wild horse or burro, and to begin gentling and training it,” said Art DiGrazia of the BLM. “These are intelligent, loyal and highly trainable animals.”

To qualify, adopters must be at least 18 years old and have no convictions for inhumane treatment of animals. BLM staff members will interview all prospective adopters to be sure they meet the BLM adoption requirements.

Newly adopted horses and burros must be kept in corrals with at least 400 square feet of space per animal (20 feet by 20 feet), surrounded by a fence built of pipe or boards. Six-foot corral fences are required for adult horses.

Adopters must provide a halter and lead rope. BLM wranglers will halter and load adopted animals. Adult horses must be transported in stock trailers with side-swinging gates.

Title to adopted wild horses and burros remains with the federal government for one year. After providing a year of good care, adopters can receive title. The BLM or a representative will check on the condition of the animals during the adoption period.

“Adopters love their horses for pleasure riding and trail riding, back country packing, ranch work and competition. People train their burros for back country packing, pulling carts, and riding,” DiGrazia said.

Wild horses and burros are protected by a federal law, the Wild and Free Roaming Horses and Burros Act. The law recognizes the animals as “living symbols of the historic and pioneer spirit of the west,” and requires the BLM to manage the wild herds.

The BLM periodically gathers horses and burros to control herd populations on ranges shared with wildlife and domestic livestock. Herd sizes are controlled to ensure there is sufficient feed and water for all range users and to ensure that natural resources are not over-used.

There are about 31,000 wild horses and burros roaming on public rangelands in the western states. More than 215,000 animals have been placed in private care since the BLM’s Adopt-a-Horse-or-Burro Program began in the early 1970s.

For additional information on the adoption event or wild horse management, contact the BLM toll free at 866-4MUSTANGS or DiGrazia at (760) 384-5764. Information is also available online at www.wildhorseandburro.blm.gov.